MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger

Community and Synagogue Involvement

MAZON is the only national Jewish social justice organization devoted to ending domestic hunger.  With the support of 1500+ synagogue and community partners across America, MAZON builds a bridge between the abundance with which many American Jews are blessed and the deprivation suffered by millions of others, both Jews and non-Jews.

Read more about MAZON’s partnership with the Jewish Community & Synagogues on our blog »

What is a MAZON Partner Synagogue?

A MAZON Partner Synagogue mobilizes its members to help MAZON end the injustice of hunger through raising awareness, fostering advocacy and integrating tzedakah for hunger relief into holiday observance, community events and lifecycle celebrations. All MAZON partner synagogues receive MAZON’s semi-annual newsletters, annual reports, progress reports on MAZON’s work and other timely hunger- and social justice-related information.
Benefits of MAZON Partnership include:

• Broad impact as part of a dynamic national Jewish community movement.
• Recognition on the MAZON website Partner Honor Roll.
• Acknowledgment in nationally distributed publications.

Ways to engage your synagogue:

• Appoint a liaison as the link between your synagogue and MAZON. This liaison meets informally with families preparing for a simcha and with other groups planning synagogue functions. General responsibilities include providing materials and answering questions about MAZON.
• Incorporate MAZON’s anti-hunger message into your synagogue holiday celebrations. Encourage your synagogue to participate in MAZON’s biannual campaigns – during High Holy days and Passover – to collect food for local charities and funds for MAZON.
  • High Holy Days – Corners of Our Fields: Encourage individuals to donate the amount they would have spent on food if they had not fasted on Yom Kippur.  The donations will be shared with other individuals less fortunate.
  • Passover – The Symbolic Guest: Symbolically “let one who is hungry come and eat” by inviting MAZON to congregational, communal and home Seders.  Suggest donating to MAZON the amount that would have been spent on food for one extra guest at the Seder table.
  • Passover – The 5th Question: For its 25th year, MAZON introduced “The 5th Question” to Passover seders: “Why on this night are millions of people going hungry?” Talk about how it would feel if you and your family lived meal-to-meal, and how you can make a difference. More information and graphics are available for congregations, communities and households here.
• Add a 3%  surcharge to all synagogue events where food is served.
• If your synagogue has a standard facilities rental agreement, consider adding a “MAZON clause” suggesting that 3% of the cost of the rental be donated to MAZON.

The above is simply a list of suggested participation guidelines. Partnership with MAZON is entirely voluntary and, once established, does not obligate the congregation financially or administratively.

Feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

Jewish Council for Public Affairs

Since 2009, MAZON and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) have joined together for specialized Child Nutrition Seders. Read more about these innovative events, and ensure all children can eat healthy this Passover.